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Monday 14th February 2022
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Saving money can be really tough sometimes, particularly when the basic cost of living seems to be soaring. It’s all too easy to feel like your spending’s out of control and there’s nothing you can do about it. The truth is, it’s easier to get a grip on your finances than it seems – and it all starts with taking an honest look at your situation. Here are a few simple tricks and tips to get you on the right track.
The most important first step you can make is to give yourself a clear picture of where you’re money’s going each month. If you’re looking to find ways to save cash, you need to spot the leaks in your wallet first.
One of the most useful hacks for this is what’s called the “zero-based” or “zero-sum” budget. It’s simpler than it sounds. First, figure out exactly how much money you’ve got coming in, regardless of where it’s coming from. Once that’s done, look at where all that money’s going. Start with the stuff you really can’t control, like rent or mortgage payments, before moving on to your “optional” spending. Finally, don’t forget to take any cash you’re saving into account. A lot of people miss this step, but remember – every penny goes somewhere, even if you save it.
If it’s sounding like hard work already, remember that there are loads of free apps designed to make it simpler. At this point, the goal is to get organised so you can make better decisions later.
Okay, so you’ve got a budget and a strong idea of which costs you can control and which you can’t. That’s pretty much half the battle won already! Now let’s get into some specifics.
Shopping online is incredibly convenient – and honestly, it’s also just fun. The temptations are endless and the systems are designed to make it as easy as possible to dip into your digital pocket. Subscribing to a string of mailing lists can be murder on your finances, though, and businesses are experts at using them to part you from your cash. These aren’t just anonymous adverts we’re talking about. Email lists will often “speak” to you by name and use information companies have about you to get you to “impulse buy” what they’re offering. When you take your name off those lists, you kill the sense of urgency they’re desperate to provoke. It’s not necessarily about stopping you from buying; it’s about giving you a better change to think it over first.
Obviously, it’s good to get advance notice of upcoming sales and offers on things you actually need. The thing is, sales happen all year round, so you don’t need to jump whenever one crops up via email. Buy the stuff you need when you need it, not when you want it.
We’re basically all going to end up shopping online anyway, so why not make it work in your favour? There are websites out there that partner up with top brands in their thousands to put money back in your pocket when you buy.
How does it work? Well, when you buy something from a seller featured on a cashback site, the seller gives the site a commission – which they share with you. You can then transfer that cash into your bank account, turn it into a gift card or use it in a range of other ways. One site called topcashback.co.uk boasts that an average member earns £345 per year through their scheme.
New site users often get bonuses like higher percentages, too, boosting your earnings in the early stages. It’s worth keeping in mind that you probably won’t get your payment the moment you buy something. In most cases, there’s a set amount of time to wait before you get your payout – often until after the return period’s over.
This is another cool hack for shopping online. If you’re not keen on cashback sites or can’t find what you need there, a simple browser plug-in can do a lot of your bargain hunting for you.
Here’s how it works. Wherever you shop on the web, with a discount code extension installed your browser will give you a heads-up on any discount codes it can dig up for you. The Honey extension, for instance, works with over 30,000 sites and automatically applies the best discounts it can find to your online shopping cart. Combine that with some basic impulse control and you’ve got a reliable winning strategy for saving cash. Obviously, you do still have to stick to buying only what you need. After all, no discount will ever leave as much money in your pocket as not making the purchase in the first place.
Okay, stick with us because this one sounds a bit odd at first. Take your spare cash and stick it in an envelope each month. We overspend so often because it’s being made too easy for us. Ditch the digital purchases and go cash-only for anything outside your essential outgoings.
We can easily get detached from what we’re actually spending when we use cards. Now, instead of waving your plastic at a machine every time you go to the pub or cinema, you pull cash directly from your envelope. This guarantees you stay inside the limits you’ve set for buying non-essentials.
Having an actual running total of your budget in your hands is a great way to keep track of your spending and stick to your goals. As your envelope gets lighter, you know to slow down. At the same time, because you’ve specifically set it aside as fun money, you know that every pound from that envelope can be spent with a clear conscience without blowing your budget.
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Gym memberships always seem like a good investment at the time. You’ve put your money where your mouth is, now all you’ve got to do is stop filling that mouth full of chips, right?
The trouble is, with any investment, you’ve got to think about the returns you’re getting. Suppose you hit the gym 3 times in a month on a £30 membership scheme. That’s £10 per visit – and you’re paying the same even if you never set foot through the door!
Instead of pricey subscription packages, invest in a cheap set of weights or resistance bands. You can get them easily online, and YouTube is packed with free exercise tutorials you can follow from home. No monthly fees, no travel costs to factor in and nothing to stop you reaching your financial fitness goals.
Train fares can vary massively, with a lot depending on when you buy your ticket and the specific route you pick. In general, the earlier you buy, the less you’ll pay to travel, so checking out the fares well in advance will usually get you the best deals. If you use trains regularly, then a railcard could be a smart option, too. You’ll get a discount of a third off your fare when you use it, assuming your journey qualifies, and it’ll all add up over time.
Another option to look into is “splitting”, which sites like trainsplit.com can help you do. Basically, instead to buying a ticket for your entire journey, you can often make impressive savings by splitting the journey into chunks. Your first ticket gets you from point A to point B, then your second one takes you from B to your final destination of C. The best thing is you don’t even have to change seats, let alone trains, to do it. Strangely, this “split” journey can end up being a lot cheaper overall.
The last thing to remember about trains is that you can get compensation if your journey’s delayed by over 15 minutes. A lot of people miss out on this, and the systems can vary depending on the company. Even so, it’s always worth checking what you’re entitled to when your train service lets you down.
You can read up on this in our article “The 1p Money Saving Challenge”, but it’s basically just a very low-hassle trick to help you save an extra £667.95 per year. You can take the challenge with nothing more than a jar or piggy bank, or do it digitally if that’s easier. Either way, it’s as simple as saving a penny one day, then 2p the next and so on. It doesn’t sound like it’d amount to much, but over a year it’s an impressive way to save.
This might be a bitter piece of advice for dedicated coffee drinkers, but those name-brand indulgences are flushing good money straight down the toilet. £3 per day quickly adds up to £15 per working week, then £765 per year. That’s more than enough to pay down a nagging debt or handle most kinds of emergency expenses.
If you really can’t live without coffee in your life, making it at home is a good way to bring the costs down. Even just switching to a less expensive brand will help in the long term. Cheaper places like Greggs and McDonalds might feel like a step down, but a lot of what you’re paying for with more expensive coffee just boils down to the brand name and presentation anyway.
If even that seems like a step too far, whatever big-name coffee brand you’re loyal to might actually have systems to help you out. Check out any incentive schemes they offer. Sometimes just bringing in your own mug can get you some kind of bonus or discount.
If you’ve got a thermostat, this is an instant way to start saving money – particularly in the colder parts of the year. Dialling your heating down by 1 degree will usually make very little difference to how warm most people feel. However, it could save as much as £90 over a year on energy bills. Experiment with your thermostat until you find the right balance between comfort and cost.
It’s absolutely fine to treat yourself so often but, while a simple takeaway holds a place in most of our hearts, ordering in food several times a month can be pretty costly across the year. A lot of food delivery places have a minimum order that’ll see you spending more than you would otherwise, too. If you live alone, for instance, buying extra to make up the value is as bad for your wallet as your waistline.
Takeaways tend to have busy and quiet periods during a week, so ordering on specific days can actually grab you some surprisingly tasty discounts. JustEat, for instance, will give you 20% off the price of your order on Tuesdays. Meanwhile, Dominos tends to run a “Two for Tuesday” deal which can also save you a fair bit of cash.
Our takeaway tips
Shopping for food definitely comes out of the “everyday essentials” section of your monthly budget. That doesn’t mean you’ve got no control over the cost, though. There are plenty of simple, effective ways to bring down your bills.
Here's a few examples
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